Sonic the Hedgehog: Season 3
by Coldlight-san
Summary: This is my version of the canceled 3rd Season of the Saturday morning cartoon of Sonic the Hedgehog. It takes no material from the comics, Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog or Sonic Underground.
1. Episode 1: Bright New Morning

_Author's Note:_

_This story is based on characters created by respective owners. The plot is original (to me anyway). Resemblance to any other plot is unintentional. Anyone may copy and distribute this work PROVIDED 1) it is not sold, 2) it is UNALTERED (except typographical corrections), and 3) my name is on it as the author. For any other uses, please contact me._  
_This series is based on the SatAM cartoon only. This is the first story is a series that is my idea of the lost 3rd season of SatAM. I attempt in every way I can to be as faithful to the SatAM universe and storyline. This version is a re-released version of a series I published many years ago. The story has been updated, and may be further altered in subsequent chapters.  
_

_Story by Coldlight-san (aka BrmSort)_  
_ email: brmsort _  
_ I look forward to any comments._

EPISODE 1: BRIGHT NEW MORNING

"FREEDOM . . . FREEDOM . . . FREEDOM . . . !" the Freedom Fighters cheered. The Doomsday Project was destroyed, and its diabolical creator, ROBOTNIK, had been deposed. Fireworks were launched, bursting in the night sky with incredible blues, greens, and reds. Whistles, horns, and sirens blared throughout the village, filling the forest whose only nighttime sounds were normally the hoots of owls and chirping of crickets. The Great Forest was flooded with the hoots and hollers of the hundreds of Mobians who had fought for years to see this victory. They danced and jumped and yelled out with joy all over Knothole Village. Tears of joy rolled down the cheeks of more than a few as hugs, handshakes, and high-fives were shared. After more than ten years, freedom was finally secured. Sonic and Sally looked at each other with joy and love in their eyes.

The pink aura that surrounded Sally and Sonic from the energy of the Deep Power Stones slowly subsided, and they rematerialized in their hands.

"So, Sal, what is this ex-hero gonna do with these bad boys?"

Sally shook her head. "I am not sure. Their power is so incredible that I still think it might be best to get rid of them. On the other hand, with all of Mobius having to start civilization from scratch, they may be a great source of energy for us."

"Kinda like how Griff used my ring power stone to power that underground city? That would be mondo cool, Sal. You know what? This hedgehog is thinking that this old world might not be so boring without a villain after all. It's a whole new world, Sal. With your smarts, my can-do attitude, and everyone else helping us out, this planet will be up and kicking in no time!"

Sally smiled and nodded. "There are so few of us, but we'll manage." The Freedom Fighters' numbers had dwindled over the years of war to under one hundred. But they all had remained strong, and the will to win had paid off. Sally gave Sonic a peck on the cheek. "Sonic, can you get everyone's attention?"

"Sure thing, Sal! - HEY, EVERYBODY!" Sonic let out an ear-piecing whistle. The din of the celebration slowly died off as as all stopped to listen. "Sal's got to tell you guys something."

Sally took a step forward toward the crowd. She cleared her throat, straightened up, and said: "Today, we finally won the great struggle against Robotnik." A loud cheer went up. "We have all lost someone dear to us in this war." All heads bobbed in affirmation. "But those we lost have not be lost for nothing because our oppressor Robotnik is finally gone!" Another loud series of cheers. Sally held her hands up, and the crowd quieted itself down. "Many of our loved ones are robotacized in the city. We will go there tomorrow to find a way to bring them back. Tomorrow, we will begin to rebuild our world starting with that glorious city that Robotnik soiled with the his pollution and treachery, that city my father built as a monument to the peace and prosperity of a free people. Tomorrow, we will begin to rebuild Mobotropolis! Tomorrow dawns a bright new morning!"

"HOORAY! LONG LIVE PRINCESS SALLY! LONG LIVE FREEDOM . . . FREEDOM . . . FREEDOM . . . FREEDOM!" The celebration lasted long into the night, but soon all grew tired and went to sleep under the bright stars of the clear summer night in Knothole.

The next morning, Sonic was up early despite the late night. He was impatient to get going. "It feels mondo strange waking up with ol' Buttnik being history." For years, he had woken up every morning with something to do: if he wasn't going to make Robotnik's life harder, he was certainly planning it out. But not today. He stepped out of his hut. A thick morning fog wrapped everything in a shady white mist. The smell of the forest came out strongest at times like this: the thick, rich odor of soil, humus, and moss. It was a smell all had come to appreciate ever since Robotnik had polluted pretty much the rest of Mobius, and he breathed it in deeply. "Somehow, the air tastes just that much sweeter today," he remarked to himself. The fog made him feel chilled. Wrapping his arms around himself, he meandered over to the Ring Pool. He found that Sally was already there, sitting on the old fallen log, toying with a power ring in her hands. Sonic sat down next to her. They were both silent for some time. They weren't looking at anything in particular, just enjoying each other's company. Sally broke the silence. "Sonic, I'm scared."

"Say what?!"

Sally explained, "It has been so long since we have lived in a real civilized manner. All of us have lived as rebels for so long, can we really put aside our differences, get along, and live together? I mean, I am going from being the leader of a small band here in Knothole to being the princess of a whole world! The politics of that are completely different. And my father, what about him? Oh Sonic, it's good to be rid of Robotnik, but so many new problems to address. Everyone has such high expectations. What if things don't go so easily, what if I fail, will they lose hope and give up?" Sonic realized her concerns – though the part about politics almost derailed him - but his optimism was as unstoppable as his feet.

"Tell ya what, Sal, I wouldn't worry quite yet. Give things a shot. Be yourself. We'll work it out. If we can smoke Bullet-head, we can overcome some attitude problems." He placed his hand on Sally's: "Hey, what could possibly go wrong with the Hedgehog on the job?" He wiggled his eyebrows up and down at her in a not-at-all trustworthy manner. Sally could not help but laugh at the "sell."

"Thank you, Sonic." His confident manner had a way of soothing her greatest doubts.

Sonic held her hands and pulled her up from the log. "Now let's get these lazy Mobians up. We have a world to rebuild!"

Miles away, in the smoky, acrid city that was formerly the capital of Robotnik's oppressive empire, there was activity. Someone had survived the assault on Doomsday: Snivley, Robotnik's midget of a nephew and (former) lackey. But he had a problem. "Curse you, Julian, you useless bucket of slime! Even from beyond the grave you make me miserable!" Snivley sobbed. He was so ecstatic; now that the "Big Round Guy" was gone, he would rule Mobius as Snivley the Great. But he had forgotten one thing – Robotnik, many years before during the Coup, had voice-locked the forces! Only with Robotnik's pre-approval had he able to command them in the past. But Robotnik was gone, and it would likely take weeks or months for him to crack the programming on the system. On the other hand, he could boss the robotacized citizens around and have them make new equipment, but that would take too long. He knew the troublesome hedgehog would be sure to show up in the city soon. He needed Naugus.

He tightly grabbed the arms of the chair in the Control Room and called out for the wizard. The Void opened up behind him in the back of the Control Room. Naugus emerged from the portal riding atop the Robocat that Sonic had once raced. The Void closed. " You need me, Snivley?" asked the wizard in his wheezy, crackling voice.

"Yes," said Snivley as he straightened his clothes and the few hairs left on his head. "I need a way to get full access to Robotnik's programs and command codes. The Big Round Guy has everything locked with voice encryption."

The old wizard thought for a moment and sighed. "My magic cannot change computer programming. But," he declared with a rather crooked and toothy sneer, "I do have an idea."

As Naugus and Snivley were trying to get Robotropolis up and running again, the Freedom Fighters were making their way across the Great Plain toward Mobotropolis. Sonic and Sally had gone ahead to check the main computer to get any data on how to reverse the robotacization process. The city was still pretty much abandoned as Robotnik had most of his forces stationed at Doomsday. There was one SWATbot they came across, but he was inactive. Sonic could not control himself. "Check this out, Sal!" He began taunting the comatose robot. "Come on, tough guy, gimme your best shot." He danced around the bot with both his fists up in front of him, like an old-style boxer. Sally laughed at his antics. "Why, I could beat ya one handed, even one fingered!" With that, he poked the SWATbot in the gut with his index finger. The metal figure slowly toppled backward, crashing into the ground with tremendous cacophony.

"Okay, Sonic, playtime's over," Sally remarked as she put her arms around one of his.

"Right, Sal. Let's go!" He picked Sally up in his arms. He never thought of it before, but Sally seemed so light. He would never admit it to anyone because it would be "too mushy" to do so, but Sally also smelled really nice. Well, that wasn't quite right. It wasn't so much that she smelled nice, but that it smelled like her, someone close and special to him. the smell of a thousand memories. And that made it nice.

They were soon inside Robotnik's former headquarters. Quickly they made their way to the main computer in the Control Room. It all felt surreal, how they were just making their way through such a place like they owned it. They opened the door to the Control Room. Someone was waiting that they never expected to see. "Naugus!" they gasped together.

"What a pleasant surprise! Sonic and Sally. Just the two I wanted to see." Even though his words were friendly enough, something about his tone and sneer hinted otherwise.

Sonic was puzzled. "What are ya doing here, Naugus? I mean, how? I'm the only one fast enough to get you out of . . ."

"Ahh, that is where you are wrong, Sonic Hedgehog. Look in the corner. An old friend of yours, perhaps?"

Sonic recognized the robotic feline. "That's weird, how did he get his hands on that?" Sonic wondered to himself. "Hello, Rodent," a rather sarcastic and diminutive voice said.

Sonic and Sally spun around toward the other corner. There stood Snivley, wearing such an over-the-top sinister suit complete with cape. "Snobbley! How ya doin'?" Sonic asked with a mocking smile. Sonic ran over and spread the cape out. "Nice duds."

"That's Snivley," the midget retorted, pulling his cape back into place.

"Yah, whatever ya say, Snob," Sonic yawned. "So you got out of Doomsday before . . . it folded like a cheap suit," said the hedgehog, who poked as Snivley's outfit to highlight his joke. "So what'cha doing up here with ol' Naugus?"

"It should be obvious even to someone with your diminished brain power, rodent," replied Snivley as he walked across the room and sat in the central chair. "Naturally, this is where the ruler of Robotropolis would be. And that, you filthy curs," Snivley growled, "would be me."

Sonic and Sally were not very impressed; they never had much, if any, respect for Snivley. They were more concerned with the powerful wizard before them. "Where do you fit into all this, Naugus?" questioned Sally.

"Well, I am very appreciative of Snivley's gift, the cat. In fair payment, I plan to aid him in keeping his new kingdom. Right now, he cannot control any military units, so I intend to help him." With a wave of his hand he hypnotized Sally.

Things were getting out of hand, and Sonic was ticked. "I don't think so, Pal!" Sonic made a lunge at Naugus only to be trapped waist-high in crystal. Sonic laughed. "Ooh! Big bad scary magic you have there, Haggis. You think since we last met we didn't come up with a way to counter your crystal traps? You don't know the Freedom Fighters, pal!" Sonic derided the wizard. "Nicole, my fav artificial bud, do it to it!"

"TIME TO ROCK IT OUT, MY MAIN HEDGEHOG." Nicole let out a high-pitched series of tones. The crystal trap shattered.

"Past cool, Nicky!" Sonic took a melodramatic stance and pointed a finger at Naugus. "Give it up! You're just a has-been, Naugus." The wizard narrowed his eyes.

"Do you think that is the extent of my power? Foolish creature!" He waved his hand toward Sonic. Instantly, the blue hedgehog found himself at the front of the Freedom Fighters making their way to the city. "Sonic," cried Tails, "where did you – woah, what's that?" he asked, pointing toward the city. Sonic spun around and saw a bright red dome of energy enveloping the city. He mumbled the name of Naugus under his breath.

Sonic explained the situation to all the Freedom Fighters: how Snivley and Naugus had taken over Robotropolis and captured Sally. A few took the news pretty hard, falling to the ground like they had no strength to stand. Others showed grim faces; years of war had taught them to accept when fate took an unexpected turn. "Look," Sonic called out, "I know this isn't what we wanted. It stinks big time. But we can't quit now, not when we are so close. Are you really scared of Snivley?"

"What about the wizard?" an armadillo who lay sobbing on the ground asked. "It was hard enough fighting machines; how are we going to might magic too?" Sonic really didn't know how to answer that, but he opened his mouth to say something, anything when he was interrupted.

"You fuels!" cried out a shaky nasal voice. All faces turned toward Antoine. With all the eyes looking at him, he involuntarily squealed nervously. He quickly regained his composure, cleared his throat with an uneasy cough, and continued. "Look, eet iz not az eef we 'ave any choices, no? Iz don't know about yous, but Iz getting very tireds of leeving in zee woods. Iz wants to leeve in zee fresh airs, walk een zee parks, leestening to zee lovely birds singings. Do yous want to leeves in a cave and 'ave your childreens leeve een zee caves too?" he asked pointing to a member from the Wolf Pack. "Or yous een zee icky swamps of the east?" he said pointing to the sobbing armadillo, who slowly shook his head. "For zee first time een years, Iz thought of warm sunny summer days een zee park, by a fountain, reading lover pooms to my Princess." Everyone groaned at Antoine's delusions, but they knew he had a point. There was no way around it; they had to keep fighting. How hard could getting rid of Snivley be?

"And," Sonic added, "we hafta rescue Sal." Everyone agreed. "Uncle Chuck?"

"Yes, Sonny Boy?"

"Whadaya make of this glowing stuff around Robo-town?"

Uncle Chuck took a deep breath, placing a hand under his chin as he did when deep in thought. He walked up to it. He thoroughly examined it – looking, listening, touching (it felt solid and slightly warm), and even smelling it (there was no odor). He sighed. "Well, Sonny, I can't really say much about it other than it looks like some kind of summoned barrier from Naugus. Perhaps a power ring will let you get through it."

"All right, stand back everyone. It's juice'n'jam time." He pulled a power ring from his pack and activated it. A yellow aura surrounded him. He curled himself up into a super spin and charged into the wall. It flickered and sparked but did not break. Try as he might, it seemed the barrier repaired itself as fast as he could damage it. The power ring's boost wore off; Sonic stopped. His quills needed some time to cool down. "Well, any other ideas, Unc?"

"Naugus' abilities are not all-powerful, Sonny Boy, but they can be very difficult to overcome. I suspect you could get through , but you need more power."

Sonic began pacing beside the barrier. "But where am I gonna get more juice from, Unc? Sally has the other DP Stone." Uncle Chuck just shook his head and put his hand back under his chin.

"Hey Sonic!" Rotor said as he lumbered up to them.

"Yo Rote, what's cooking?"

"I'm just thinking out loud here, but – Uncle Chuck, are you listening?" asked the inventor. Uncle Chuck started out his reverie, looked over at Rotor, and nodded. Rotor continued. "Anyway, I was thinking I might be able to give you a boost, Sonic."

Sonic gave Rotor a pat on the back. "Really? That would be way past cool. How would you do it?"

Rotor smiled widely. He knew he wasn't strong, fast, or clever, but solving problems with technology was his way of fighting. It felt good when he could help and even better when his friends acknowledged it. "There's no guarantee, but I think I can use your deep power stone to make a deep power ring."

Sonic was speechless. With his mouth wide open he just looked over at his uncle, who had returned to deep in thought.

"Hmm," he mumbled aloud, "it might work. If the power of the stone is inherent to its substance, the generator should be able to convert the power into a usable ring matrix. Of course, we will have to tweak the hydrofilters and adjust the palladium st. . ." Uncle Chuck's voice drifted into unintelligible murmurings.

Sonic's shock had worn off; he stood with arms akimbo, foot tapping impatiently. "Yo, Unc, so will it work or not?"

Once again, the elder hedgehog found himself yanked from his thoughts. He nodded slowly at first, then enthusiastically. "It might, I think it might just be possible, Sonny."

"Then let's get cookin', Unc! Sal needs me!"

With his uncle and Rotor in tow, Sonic burned up the ground back to Knothole. Tails, curious about the new power rings, decided to follow. The rest of the Freedom Fighters decided to start heading back to their respective homes. With Snivley picking up where Robotnik left off, they had to make sure the hard-fought footholds they had established were not lost during their absence. Sonic screeched to a stop at the pool. Rotor and Uncle Chuck took a few moments to get their bearing while Sonic tapped his foot impatiently. "Any year now."

"Remember, Rotor," commented Uncle Chuck, "purge all energy from the generator after you remove the old stone and before you put in the new one. We'll worry about the hydrofilters later."

Sonic pulled the deep power stone from his backpack and gave it to Rotor. Even in its deep blackness, it glowed with the immense energy it contained. "I understand, Chuck." As he dove into the cool forest pool, a power ring emerged. Swimming to the bottom of the crystal pool, he removed the sea-green power stone from the generator, purged the energy from the machine, and then set the jet black deep power stone in the machine. Rotor returned to the surface.

"How's it look, Rote?" Rotor wiped the water out of his eyes and put his cap back on. He gave Sonic a thumbs up. "Way, way past cool, my main tinker! So how long before the first ring?"

Rotor shook his head and shrugged his shoulders. "No way to know, Sonic. There's a lot about the deep power stones we don't understand. We don't even know yet if it will work."

Sonic clucked his tongue at his humble friend. "Rote Rote, Rote. You are one mondo smart dude. If you tell me its gonna work, then I know it will."

Sonic saw that Tails had the freshly-emerged power ring in his hands, staring at it intently. "I think I understand," Tails mumbled.

"You say something, Big Guy?" asked Sonic. Suddenly, the power ring exploded with a familiar and brilliant yellow shine. An aura of power ring energy enveloped Tails, giving him the appearance of being made of gold. Everyone looked shocked, not least of all Tails. "Sonic, do you usually feel fast when the ring activates?"

Sonic shook himself out of his shock. "Uh... well … yeah, sure, Big Guy. I get this feeling, like a can't stand still, even more than normal, like I am made out of lightning."

"Weird," said Tails to himself. He didn't feel that way at all. In fact, he didn't feel different in the least. He looked down at his glowing hands. As he brought them closer together, he began to feel something. It was a strange, unpleasant feeling, like something crawling through his fur. The glow on his hands grew brighter. As if the glow were made of fine sand, it flowed from his hands into the form of a small sphere levitating between his hands. Tails thought he understood what this meant. He looked at a nearby boulder, and concentrated the flow of ring energy over his body. The ball launched across the way into the boulder, leaving a singed mark on its mossy face. The four Freedom Fighters were amazed.

Sonic was extremely surprised. "Tails, what did, I mean, when, err, how, well . . . gah! Rote? Unc?" Sonic turned to the scientists for answers.

"Well, the ring matrix activation sequence is largely keyed to a soul or personality. I can only take an educated guess. You've been his hero forever, Sonny. You've trained him; he thinks like you. His bioenergy and brainwaves must be close enough to activate the ring but not allow it to absorb it into his biology. Apparently though he does have some control over its flow." Sonic, of course, didn't understand a word of this, but he nodded his head just the same.

Tails still glowed golden. "Can you do that again, lil' bro?" asked Sonic.

"No prob, Sonic." Tails brought his hands together and felt the same strange tingling as the energy around his body flowed and collected into a bright white star between his hands. He again looked at the boulder. With the bit of energy remaining he propelled the missile into the giant rock, splitting it in half.

"So past cool you're sizzling, T2! That could come in serious handy! Unc, ya think he can do that with one of these new DP rings?"

"Could be, Sonny. I expect the properties will be almost the same, only with more power."

Sonic creased his brow in thought. "We'll wait for two rings. We may both need them."

"Need them for what?" Tails asked.

A mischievous smile crept across his face. "To show some Freedom Fighter spirit to ol' Snob and Naug!"

Back in Robotropolis, it did not take long for Sally to crack Robotnik's voice-encryption.

"There you go, Snivley. All commands and programs have been changed to recognize your voice. Now," Naugus said as he looked downward at the crystal slowly encasing his legs, "I must be going. Cat!" The Robocat streaked over and placed itself between Naugus' legs, lifting him off the floor. Naugus turned toward Snivley, "Sally's hypnosis will continue until she finds some method to get me out of the Void permanently. I trust you will not interfere, partner," Naugus placed quite the emphasis on _trust_ and _partner_; he gave Snivley a hard, cold look. Snivley knew the wizard was thinking back to the treacherous action of his uncle Julian. Snivley swallowed nervously, and he understood Naugus' implication thoroughly and had no intention of making the same mistake his uncle had. Naugus, though, was in the habit of demonstrating his points. He snapped his fingers. Instantly Snivley's nose grew three times as long.

"Ahhh!" he shrieked, as only Snivley could. "Please, Naugus, put back the way it was! I have given you the Cat. Surely, that demonstrates my good intentions!" Naugus waved his hand, and Snivley's nose returned to normal.

"Just keep that in mind, in case you sense a change of heart." Naugus turned to Sally, who was still working at the console, "Keep up the good work, Princess. You are most kind." With a laugh that was more like a symptom of pneumonia, Naugus opened the Void and rode into the vortex.

Meanwhile, it seemed that Rotor had been right. "Here comes the first ring, Sonic!" Tails cried out.

The normal rings, when they emerged from the pool, would agitate the water into a golden waterspout. But this was something entirely different. As the ground began to rumble, the pool turned black like ink. The water surged, towering like the ancient oaks of the forest. The sky grew dark as if the sun were being eclipsed. Then all went silent as the water froze, turning into a pinnacle of obsidian. At the top of the pillar, violet beams of light burst forth. The water returned to a normal color and collapsed back into the pool. A jet black ring drifted toward them. Tails nabbed it and brought it to Uncle Chuck. He gave a quick look. "Hmm. Without a scanning device, it's hard to say if everything is in order. But as far as I can tell, it all looks okay."

"Way past cool, Unc! I can't wait to try out one of these bad boys on Naugus' ol' domeski." Suddenly, the ground began to shake again. "Whoa, Unc! What's cookin'?"

"It seems the ring generator could use some adjustments. We'll get to that later though." Soon, another black deep power ring emerged from the water.

"Way cool! We got our rings. Juice time, Big Guy!"

"Right behind you, Sonic," replied Tails. In the blink of an eye and a whirlwind later, they were out of Knothole. The trip to the edge of the forcefield was uneventful.

"All right, T2. Get ready to motor!" Sonic pulled out the black ring. He raised it above his head to activate its power. A deep purple light exploded in his hand; Tails gasped.

"Sonic, what's with the glow?"

"Say what?!"

"You're bright orange!" Sonic pulled a small mirror from his pack. Hey you never knew when you might need one! Looking back at him was a handsome hunk of a hedgehog, except his signature blue quills shone a neon orange.

"Whoa, weirdsville. I don't remember glowing like that when we used the DP stones at Doomsday." Sonic shrugged.

"Didn't you say the deep power stones are, like, ten-thousand times more powerful than a power ring? I guess it is a side-effect of hypercharging you with ring power."

"Mondo awesome! Let's see what this puppy can do. Time to kick it!" Sonic charged at the forcefield. Before he could even touch it, it vaporized like steam into the air. "Now that's what I'm taking about! With this kind of juice, I'm like some kind of super Sonic." Sonic signaled Tails to follow. "Let's go Tails; Sal needs us." Tails grabbed on to Sonic. "Time to take off the brakes." With that, he charged forward at a speed he never even imagined possible! It felt like the air just stepped aside and let him slide through the atmosphere. "Hang on, Sal. Super Sonic is on the way."

Like a bolt of lightning, Sonic was instantly at the outskirts of Robotropolis. "HEDGEHOG! PRIORITY ONE! CAPTURE BY ORDER OF SNIVLEY THE GREAT!" Sonic had not expected to see the 'bots up and running yet, but they were never really that much trouble. "Well, botbutts, here I am, come and get me!" He charged into patrol of SWATbots, only to have them fall before he got there. Sonic pouted as he tapped his foot on one of the disabled guards. "This is boring. I don't get to hit anything."

"The hyper charge from the ring must be surrounding you with an electromagnetic field. It toasts anything electrical. I think it's cool!" remarked Tails.

"Of course it's cool, but there's no action. Ah, it's wearing off. Good, it's too hard to motor that fast in the city. Let's scoot 'n' root, Big Guy!" They encountered a few 'bots along the way, but shook them off in the alleys. Unlike earlier that day, they had to take the air ducts to get into Snivley's headquarters. It was a maze of ductwork, but the Freedom Fighters were very familiar with the path. They finally reached Snivley's office to find only Sally there, typing away.

"Naugus probably put a spell on her. Slap me a normal ring, Tails. I'll use the juice to snap her out of it." Tails pulled the ring out of his own backpack and handed it to Sonic. He stole out of the duct, sneaked behind Sally and placed the ring over her heart. He activated it. The blank look left Sally's eyes. "Sal?"

Sally rubbed her forehead with her hands. She hated how Naugus hypnotism left her with a two-day headache. She turned around and saw her hero. "Oh Sonic, thank you!" She gave him a peck on the cheek. "Now let's get out of here." She grimaced. "I need a couple aspirin."

"Not so fast, rodents," Snivley announced as he entered the Central Room with a small contingent of SWATbots and Hoverbots. "You're going nowhere fast," Snivley snickered. He then lost it at his own joke. "HAHAHAAAA! Get it! Nowhere - Sonic - fast! HAAAAAHA!"

Sonic and Sally rolled their eyes. "Excuse me while a chunk," muttered Sonic.

Snivley wiped the tears from his eyes and regained his composure. "Insult me while you can, Hedgehog. As soon as you're robotacized, you never will again." No one noticed Tails behind Sally and Sonic. He took the deep power ring out of his pack.

The Void opened up, and Naugus entered the room. "Now, now, Sonic. I can't have you ruining all my and Snivley's plans all the time." He waved his hand above his head, "Any last words, Hedgehog, before I turn you into a crystal doorstop?"

A flash of violet lightning lit the room up like midday. "I don't think so, Ugly!" yelled Tails as jumped out from behind his companions.

"Tails!" Sally and Sonic cried. Instead of the familiar orange fox stood before them a deep blue one with an iridescent aura. He held his arms out toward the enemies and channeled the immense power to the tips of his fingers. Sparks in every shade of the rainbow constantly shifting in hue blasted all the enemies. The robots, including the Robocat, were all fried.

"Way past, li'l bro!" Sonic high-fived his pal. Snivley lay stunned on the floor, moaning. Naugus groaned in pain as he fell to his hands and knees.

"You foul, tick-infested vermin! You destroyed my Cat! Do you think for a moment I would let you leave this place?" He waved his hand; the three friends flinched. Nothing happened. Naugus looked puzzled. Again he waved his hand toward the Freedom Fighters. Again nothing happened. His face scrunched up in rage. "You beasts! What have you done to me?"

Sonic relished the moment. He walked up to Naugus, placing an elbow on his back, leaning on the wizard. "Well, ain't that just too bad," mocked Sonic. Naugus snapped at him with his claw, but Sonic easily dodged. The sound of metallic guards running toward them echoed from the corridors. "See you later, Haggis! We gotta juice."

"That's Naugus!" But the Hedgehog never heard him, because he was long gone with his friends. Naugus coughed. "I have to get back to the Void before I crystallize." He tried his magic again. Nothing, not even a spark. "I hate that hedgehog, and I hate that fox," he hissed.

Back in Knothole later, Sonic related the mission to the Freedom Fighters. "So is that it? Are little ol' Snivley and Naugus down for the count?" asked Bunnie.

"Probably not, dear," replied Uncle Chuck. "The energy of the rings are very biologically matched. Tails probably just knocked Snivley out and stunned Naugus. I am sure both have already recovered."

"Man, what a drag!" moped Sonic.

That evening, Sonic and Sally went to wish Tails a good night. "You were too cool, Tails - frying all those bots and taking out Wheezy!"

"Cool? Is that all I get?"

"How about - WAY PAST COOL!" Sonic gave his little pal a fist-bump.

"Yeah, too cool!" Tails replied.

"He sounds just like you. I can't believe it!" cried Sally with feigned irritation.

"Yeah, he sounds like me, but he thinks smart like you. The best of the both I would say." He took her hand. "But you're prettier," he whispered. Sally blushed. Tails just cringed with embarrassment.

"Yuck! Can't you guys take that somewhere else?"

-END EPISODE 1-


	2. Episode 2: From Rabbit to Rabbot

EPISODE 2: From Rabbit to Rabbot

_Background: Before season one. Bunnie is not robotacized._

The Great War was over. The Mobians won the war, but the commanding general of the Mobian forces, Julian, used his massive robotic army to conquer the planet he had defended. He renamed himself Robotnik. Although Robotnik's forces had subjugated the planet rapidly and with little resistance, not all were conquered. The children of the royal families, their nanny Rosie, and a handful of loyal Mobotropolian citizens took refuge in the secret village of Knothole, deep in the Great Forest. Rumors circulated that other hidden outposts similar to Knothole were providing refuge to many fortunate Mobians. However, none knew how to find and contact fellow refugees, if they even existed. For years, the children could do nothing: they were much too young to fight back. Sally, Sonic, Rotor, Bunnie, and Antoine watched and waited as they saw Freedom Fighters leave on missions, but some never returned. At first it was scary, knowing that men and women who were like uncles and aunts to them had been robotacized. As time went on, though, and such events became familiar, it scared them less and rather tempered their resolve. They were the successors of the rightful Mobian authority: they would restore what had been stolen. First, they had to grow up a little, the adults said. In the mean time, like all children, they would need to learn how to live. Rosie provided schooling in primary Mobian subjects like language, culture, mathematics, literature, and so on. Cat, a retired soldier from the Mobian army prior to Julian's use of SWATbots, provided knowledge in the art of combat and strategy.

Sonic, though his patience was minimal, was deceptively bright. If anyone could get his attention long enough, he usually knew the answers. His speed was both his greatest strength and weakness: it could get him out of many tight spots, but it also permitted him to be brash and compulsive. More than once, he had gone to Robotropolis to look around and cause trouble for Robotnik. Though his so-called missions had little impact on Robotnik's plans, the dictator was quickly developing a dislike for the upstart hedgehog. Sonic demonstrated a keen sense of field awareness, Cat noted. Sonic had a knack for conceiving creative solutions and making snap decisions. These were a skills no one could teach. Cat prepared the impulsive Mobian to be the future leader of Knothole.

Sally was devastated by the disappearance of her father the King. She had also lost her mother not long before. But as royalty, she had been brought up to put her people before herself. She took the burden she bore as the successor to her deposed father seriously and her duty as princess soberly. She was not the strongest or most savvy of the next generation, but she was a quick learner and applied herself more than any other, so she would be a worthy model of Mobian royalty. She told others to not call her princess, not because she hated it, but because she didn't want anyone going lightly on her by virtue of her station. She always displayed a steady countenance, but at night she would frequently cry herself to sleep, partly for missing her father, partly for the suffering of her people, and partly for the rage she felt toward the man who caused it all.

Bunnie, as the only other young girl, developed a deep bond with Sally. She was the only one that knew Sally not as the calm and collected princess but as a hurting and burdened soul. Bunnie, despite her delicate upbringing, had a tomboyish streak running through her feminine charm. Of all the studies, Bunnie excelled at martial arts and hand-to-hand combat. Paradoxically, she also felt it was important, outside of battle, to carry herself with all the grace and beauty of a noble family's daughter. She spent much time with Rosie, learning family care, etiquette, and the like. She treated her friends with dignity and gentleness, and she prepared herself to one day dispense white hot justice against their enemy Robotnik. She had the temper of a cottonmouth and the determination of a badger, making her one of the most capable Freedom Fighters.

Rotor was quiet and reclusive, preferring the perusal of plans and the smell of oil in Knothole's workshop to Cat's lessons in tactics. Rotor was slow and awkward and didn't have much success in Cat's lessons. He found that in the small lab he was having more success, but unfortunately, he had no one to teach him to properly use the schematics and laboratory equipment. So he spent many hours studying on his own and teaching himself chemistry and other branches of science. By much trial and error, he taught himself. He was well on his way to becoming a superb mechanic and inventor.

Antoine was a timid child and the youngest of the group. He was not exceptional in strength or knowledge or stealth. As many Mobian boys, he would imagine himself as a brave hero in service to a princess. It just so happened that his princess was indeed the Princess. Antoine was uncoordinated, unsure, and easily frightened, so his dream of serving his Princess seemed very unlikely. But like his Princess, there was more to Antoine than what appeared to others. At the core of his soul, he wanted nothing more than to protect and serve Sally. He despised his cowardice and prayed for the day he could conquer it.

The years advanced quickly, as it does for all children in schooling. Before they knew it, eleven years had passed, and they were on their first mission in the city. Everyone was a edge, especially Antoine.

"Quiet, Antoine," Sally whispered harshly. "Do you want to bring every SWATbot in Robotropolis down on us?" Sally, Antoine, Bunnie, and Cat were deep within the city's heart looking for a powerful new source of energy: a power stone. Rotor had discovered some schematics in one of Knothole's storage sheds. They outlined the design for a device called a ring generator. Sir Charles Hedgehog, Sonic's guardian and uncle, had invented the machine for his adopted son as the Great War was raging. With the fate of his people uncertain, the royal scientist had conceived the power ring as a performance enhancement for his super fast child, that it may help protect him if something were to go wrong with the war.

"I am sorry, my Princess; but zee filthy air eez choking my throat and tickling my nose. How can I helps it eef I cough and sneeze?" Antoine asked as he rubbed his nose with a handkerchief.

"Doesn't matter, Ant, you gotta hold it in," encouraged Cat. As this was their first mission, the veteran Cat was tasked with overseeing it and ensuring their safety. His age slowed him down somewhat, but he was just as determined as the rest to bring down Robotnik.

"He's right, Pumpkin. We all gotta cough, but we're keepin' it back 'cause we got to," cooed the gentle voice of Bunnie. She was a beautiful young Mobian, covered in silky fawn fur. Her smooth drawl soothed anyone's nerves.

Antoine nodded his head. "Oui, I will do my best." He tied the handkerchief around his face to filter out some of the irritants permeating the city air. It looked ridiculous but seemed to help. It also quieted his gagging. "Where ees dat Hedgehog?" he moaned.

Across the square, in a prominent building that looked more like a palace than a factory, Sonic began his task. "Gotta juice. The guys are waitin' on me," Sonic said to himself. The plan was simple: get the SWATbots' attention and get them to chase him out of the building. Due to his numerous previous excursions into the city, the SWATbots were familiar with his face. With the building empty of bots, his friends would move in to do their job. Without thought (which was Sonic's way of approaching things), the super fast hedgehog dropped out of an air duct into the midst of a SWATbot staff meeting.

"MEETING ADJOURNED. CAPTURE HEDGEHOG," droned the commanding robot officer.

"In your dreams, metal moron. Let's see if you losers can keep up." He dashed out of the room with a few dozen SWATbots in pursuit. He found himself streaking across a wide-open lobby. Some Tankbots nearby noticed the intruder and joined in. Rockets and lasers narrowly missed him. "Hey, careful, guys. You're singein' me!" Two more Tankbots guarded the exit. "Time to shake and bake! Don't blink; you'll lose me." He abruptly stopped before the guards and leaped as high in the air as he could. The numerous rockets that were following him hit the guards, blowing them to bits. When he landed, Sonic turned to the pursuers and gave them a raspberry. "Nice aim, numskulls," he said and dashed outside with the bots following close behind. The building was empty. As Sonic led them on a merry chase, four figures emerged from the shadows and entered the building. Some strange writing was over the door; it looked like a series of geometric figures. It was the written language of Mobius. Translated, it said, "Mobian Royal Planetary Bank."

The lobby of the once largest bank on Mobius also had been one of the grandest, second only to the palace. White and green marble floor tiles had formed a checkerboard pattern, and the cathedral dome ceiling had gold and silver plated reliefs depicting the history of Mobius, and the walls had been ebony and covered with rich tapestries depicting natural beauty. Unfortunately, it was no longer such an impressive display. The gold and silver had been melted down for circuitry and wires; the exotic wood had been burned for fuel for Robotnik's massive power plants; and the tiles had been so pulverized and dirty from constant bot traffic that the floor looked like nothing more than oily rubble. Only Cat was old enough to remember the bank in the days of the King, and its now dilapidated state caused him to shed a few silent tears as he and his students crossed the lobby to the elevators.

As they waited for one, Sally recounted the plan to the group. "We have about ten minutes, I figure, before Robotnik realizes that Sonic is just fooling around with the bots and decides to send them back here. We're looking for the safe-deposit box that contains the power stone necessary for the ring generator. The schematics were damaged so we don't know where it is exactly, but, according to the older Mobians, the safe-deposit repositories are on the second and third floors. The box number is 3224. Cat, you and Bunnie will take floor three while Antoine and I search floor two. Remember: ten minutes! Any questions?"

Antoine slid over to Sally, invading her personal bubble, and piped up. "Oui, I haves a question?" He cleared his throat with an 'ahem' and said, "I was wondering if, perhaps, later this evening you and moi could, how do you say, -"

Sally had no patience for Antoine's poor timing. "Antoine, this isn't the time. Does anyone have a real question?" Sally interrupted. Antoine looked down at his feet in embarrassment, and the others shook their heads. "Good! Let's go." The elevator took the two teams upward quickly. Sally and Antoine got off on the second floor. "Good luck, you two. You have nine minutes," said Sally, and then the elevator door closed to take the other team to the top floor. The floor was situated as a long hall with rooms on one side, where the guests would have private access to their boxes. On the other side windows overlooked the former capital of a free Mobius. The view was probably breathtaking in the day, Antoine thought to himself. At the end of the hall, behind the cobalt shards of a crushed glass counter, was the storage location for the boxes. They were torn apart and strewn about, their contents looted by bots for Robotnik no doubt.

Antoine picked up one of the empty boxes and looked inside anyway. "Oh, this eezn't looking all too goods, Princess. Maybe Robotnik alreadys have zee, how you say, power stone."

Cat and Bunnie found a similar mess on the top floor. "I guess we shouldn't have expected anything less from Robotnik," commented Cat as he dug through the hollow and mangled boxes.

"I hope Sally-girl and Antoine are havin' more luck," sighed Bunnie.

"Nicole, transmit combination from file _power_stone_," Sally commanded, hoping that maybe in the mess the bots might have missed the stone.

"COMBINATION TRANSMITTED, SALLY. . . . NO RECIPIENT," replied Nicole. Sally's shoulders dropped in obvious disappointment. "BUT," and Sally's ears perked up, "A STORED HOLOMESSAGE HAS BEEN UPLOADED INTO MY MEMORY BY THE LOCAL NETWORK. SHALL I PLAY IT?" Sally was surprised. A message?

"I am not liking dis massage b-b-beeznis," Antoine chattered in fear. "It could beez a t-t-trap."

"Oh relax, Antoine. It's just a recording. Though I can't image what it might be," she mused. Nicole impatiently beeped to remind her of the awaiting message. Sally shook her head to pull herself out of her thoughts, "Yes, yes, Nicole. Please play it."

A holographic projection of a hog, dressed in formal attire complete with a top hot and monocle, appeared before them. He wiped his brow with a yellow handkerchief. In a British accent, he said, "Sir Charles, it seems the worst has happened, as you feared. As per your instructions, I have hidden your deposit in an undisclosed location. If this calamity resolves itself, I shall retrieve it at the earliest possible convenience. If," he portly gentlehog wiped his face of the obvious sweat collecting on it, "I am captured, then you will receive this message when you attempt to claim you property. I am sorry I cannot be specific about the location, but, as you instructed me, I must be discrete should the enemy gain access to this recording." A large explosion caused the stately swine to fall to the floor. Off camera, the screams of Mobians and drone of SWATbots was heard. The hog straightened himself up, fixed his bow-tie, and finished with this: "I pray you will remain well, Sir Charles. I pray we can do business again in the future."

"END OF MESSAGE, SALLY." Nicole announced.

"Wells, that eez just peaching!" exclaimed Antoine. "Now we be having no waying to knows where een zee world dis power stone eez!"

Sally shook her head. "True, Antoine, but now we have hope that it is not in the hands of Robotnik. As fast as the coup happened, I don't think the banker could have taken it very far. I bet it is still inside this building somewhere."

"But where een dis building could someone hide a box from zee bots?" wondered Antoine. Sally shrugged.

"We don't have much time left. Let's go get Bunnie and Cat. We'll have to come back another day," said Sally. Antoine groaned at the thought of ever coming back to this dusty and dank city.

As the teams searched through the former financial center of Mobius for the stone, Robotnik lounged in a green chair in the center of a dark room as Snivley worked frantically at the giant computer. He shooed a mechanical chicken off the computer panel, and it flew over to Robotnik,who held his robotic pet in his arms. "Now, now, Cluck, you must be more careful where you perch. We have important work to do," Robotnik said as he stroked its steely back. "Snivley, have you got that data yet?" the fat man bellowed.

Snivley shrieked. Robotnik was so volatile; one never knew when he would blow. But Snivley quickly regained his composure and reported, "The computer cannot determine a pattern to the Hedgehog's path. It determines that the Hedgehog has no predictable objective."

Robotnik continued to pet his mechanical bird. So the hedgehog was on another one of his silly runs through his city. One day he would devote some time to dealing with the delinquent, but with constant uprisings in the north and east, he had no time for these shenanigans. "Well, then, no reason to waste my resources for his amusement. Order them to return to their stations."

"Yes, sir." Snivley pressed a black button labeled RESET. "Bank Guard Team, return to posts." On the screen the robot parade stopped their pursuit and turned around.

Robotnik stopped petting Cluck. "What team are they?" he asked suspiciously.

Snivley reported, "They guard the former Royal Bank, sir."

"Hmm," groaned the tyrant in deep thought. Maybe he was wrong about the Hedgehog. It seemed odd that he had somehow sneaked his way into such a deep part of Robotropolis and then have that particular team of robots chase him. It did not make sense. Maybe he was a diversion. "What could possibly be there that a Freedom Fighter would want?" he asked aloud, mostly to himself.

Snivley felt compelled to answer anyway. "Sir, that is where gold and platinum is stored for use in your robots."

Robotnik shot out of his chair, sending Cluck tumbling through the air. "Of course, Snivley, if they can get their hands on my metals, they can seriously disrupt my weapon production. Get those SWATbots back to stations on the double and have them search the entire building. If there is a Freedom Fighter in that building, I don't want one of those beasts getting away!" bellowed Robotnik. He plucked Snivley up by his collar and brought the midget's eyes up to his own. "Understood, Snivley!" Cluck shrieked viciously.

Snivley trembled. He could feel the rage radiating from his uncle's glowing eyes and smell the sulfuric stench of his breath. "Understood, s-sir."

"I love my job!" exclaimed Sonic as he continued to lead Robotnik's forces on a leash, so to speak. He was the fastest thing alive, and he relished proving it. He looked down at his watch and noted that he had been running for about six minutes. "That drags," he complained. "It's already half over. Well," he perked up, "there's always tomorrow, eh, Buttnik?" It was then Sonic noticed something was off. He looked behind him just in time to see his pursuers heading back to the bank. "Aw man! That's way uncool. No way the guys have booked it yet!" He took off for the bank. The bots had a head start, but he would get there first if he had any say about it. "What I wouldn't give for one of those power rings right about now."

Back at the bank, Sally and Antoine had finished checking all the private rooms on their way back to the elevator. There wasn't much to see: they were plain square rooms, long emptied of any useful contents. Antoine's allergies were flaring up again, and he asked in an exceptionally nasal tone, "Are we to be goings now, Princess?"

Sally brushed a cobweb from her fur and nodded. "Yes, Antoine. We're almost out of time, so let's go get Cat and Bunnie. Maybe they had some luck." They walked down the hall toward the elevator. Through a window, Antoine thought he saw something move. He broke out in a cold sweat, but not wanting to seem worrisome, he said nothing. He saw it again. He felt the hair on the back of his neck stand up.

"Um, Princess," he barely croaked, "I t-t-tink we might havez comp-p-pany."

Instantly Sally ducked down and dragged the startled Antoine with her. She whispered, "Where, Antoine?"

Antoine pointed to the window. "I am not being too very sure, Princess, buts someting eez moving arounds down zares, slowly and sneakily: someting that doesn't wants to be seen."

Together, they slowly peaked out from beneath the grimy window. Without warning, a bright blue laser shattered the window in front of them. As they ducked for cover, windows all along the wall were being blown apart; they could hear and feel the concrete walls being battered by the barrage. The hall was filled with the irritating smell of ancient dust and ionized air. They felt trapped, but then Sonic emerged from the elevator. "Thank goodness to me, zee Hedgehog eez 'ere."

Sonic ran over to his beleaguered friends and tossed a grenade out the window. "Catch, boltbrains!" The explosion broke a few more windows as well as many of the besieging bots. Sonic helped Sally to her feet. "We gotta bruise 'n' cruise, Sal. The bots have surrounded the building and started movin' in."

Sally gingerly removed some of the glass from her hair. "Right, let's go get Bunnie and Cat and get outta here."

"Sounds like music to my nose!" exclaimed Antoine.

"That's 'ears,' Ant," corrected Sonic.

Antoine shook his head. "No, no, I means my nose. All dis dust eez being zee murder to my sinuses." As if to prove his point he sneezed mightily.

"Whatever you say, Ant," shrugged Sonic. They entered the elevator and pushed the button for floor three, but the elevator headed down.

"Oh no!" cried Sally. "The bots must have pushed the call button for the elevator just after we got on. They'll be waiting for us!" Sally frantically removed Nicole from her boot. "Nicole, interface with elevator control system."

Nicole came to life with the flashing of lights and bleeping of her system computing. "WORKING, SALLY."

"Work fast, Nicky," commented Sonic as he drummed his fingers on the metal wall.

"Oui, this eez good advice, Nicole." They looked at each other, each thinking the worst was about to happen. Sonic felt a fear he never had felt before. It tightened up his throat, dried his mouth, and made the heat flee from his body. His worst nightmare, though he had never told a soul, was to lose Sally to Robotnik. With his uncle gone, Sally had been his whole world since the rebellion. She was his friend, his family, and his girlfriend. Sonic braced himself, ready to do his utmost to protect her.

"ACCESS ACHIEVED, SALLY." The elevator stopped at the first floor.

"Quick, Nicole, cut all power to the elevator system!" Nobody breathed. On the other side of the door, they could hear SWATbots shuffling. It was mere seconds they waited to see if the doors would open, but an eternity passed in their minds.

"ALL POWER TO ELEVATOR SYSTEMS DISABLED."

All three sighed with relief. Antoine let out a nervous chuckle and nearly fainted. Sally leaned up against the wall. Sonic swallowed the lump in his throat, which was hard to do with his mouth so dry. "It won't be long before they or Buttnik finds a way to get in here, Sal," observed Sonic. "What's the plan?"

Sally was still frazzled. This was her first mission, after all, and they almost got caught. She took a deep breath to calm herself down. "We need to go back up for Cat and Bunnie. Then we'll head for the fire exit. That will be our best bet to get out."

"Got it!" They climbed through an emergency hatch in the top of the elevator. "You guys chill while I wedge the door open up there." He curled up into a super spin and dashed vertically up the elevator shaft. Using his spin maneuver, he forced open the top floor's door. As soon as he came to a stop on the floor, he had to dodge a steel bar being swung at him by Cat. "Whoa! Hey! Cat, careful with that! You could poke my eye out."

"Oh! I'm terribly sorry, Sonic," apologized the elder Mobian. Guess I am losing my touch in my old age, he thought to himself. "We got bots coming up the stairs, and I thought you were one coming in from the elevator."

"Yeah, SWATbots are swarmin' all over the place. The plan is -"

"Sugah! I can't hold um back no more!" hollered Bunnie from down the hall as she ran toward them. "They're bustin' in!" Three SWATbots broke through the stairway door into the hallway and fired their lasers wildly.

"Into the shaft!" yelled Sonic. "Bunnie, get the door!" Cat and Sonic jumped and grabbed the steel cable that operated the elevator and began sliding down. Bunnie picked up the steel bar Cat was using and hurled it at the pursuers. "Mind your manners! Don'tcha y'all know your shootin' at a lady?" The bar knocked one down, but the others continued toward her. More bots were entering from the stairway. She leaped for the cable and reached back to close the door.

Cat had already made it down with Sonic right behind him.

"Bunnie, please to be hurrying," encouraged Antoine as the others dove for cover into the elevator.

"Why didn't I think of that, Antoine!" retorted Bunnie. She was having difficulty getting the door shut and was more irritated with herself than Antoine. "Dang blasted smelly ol' dirty -" she mumbled to herself. Complaining out loud wasn't lady-like.

"Forget the ol' door, Bunnie! Get down!" yelled Sonic.

It was a bit too late though. A SWATbot appeared in the doorway and saw the struggling Bunnie. She was an easy target being so close. It locked on and fired. A searing laser beam tore through her left shoulder. Bunnie cried out. Reflexively, she let go with her right hand, grabbed at her shoulder as she doubled over in pain. She fell. "Bunnie!" screamed Antoine. Instinctively he reached out to catch her. She crashed into him with tremendous force. They both were unconscious with SWATbots firing from above.

"Oh my gosh!" exclaimed Sally. Her friends were powerless to head for the cover of the elevator.

"No prob, Sal! I'll distract the bots while you get um inside." Sonic dashed out of the elevator. He passed by his injured friends and went up the shaft and on to the floor with the bots. "You guys are really startin' to tick me off!" They turned their attention to this most recent threat. This gave Sally and Cat the time they needed to bring Bunnie and Antoine to safety. Sonic super spun through the hall, demolishing dozens of SWATbots. Sally called up the shaft that they were safe. "It's been fun playin' with you bots, so let's end things with a blast!" He pulled a magnetic grenade from his backpack and stuck it to a SWATbot as he ran back into the elevator shaft. The explosion rocked the whole building as it turned the robots into scrap.

In the Robotropolis headquarters, Robotnik awaited news of the operation at the former bank. "The Freedom Fighters are trapped in Elevator #2, Dr. Robotnik," reported Snivley, as Cluck pecked at his few remaining hairs.

"How many, Snivley?"

"Five, Sir - two unknown, Bunnie Rabbit, the Hedgehog, and Princess Sally." Snivley tried to shoo his tormentor away, but with his uncle looking, he couldn't do much. "One day, you nasty little. . ." Snivley grumbled under his breath.

"Oooh!" the sadistic tyrant cooed. "This is excellent, Snivley. How long until we can override the elevator controls?"

Finally Cluck gave up and went back to perch on his master. Snivley sighed. "About ten minutes."

"Time is running out, Hedgehog," Robotnik growled. Cluck squawked in triumph.

When Sonic got back into the elevator, Antoine was waking. "Oh-um," he moaned, "my pain wrack-ed body. I must be dyings." He was holding his head in his hands.

"Just take it easy, Antoine," advised Cat. "You're gonna be fine, except for some bruises and a nasty headache." He pulled some pills from his pack. "Take these. They'll help the pain a bit."

Antoine swallowed the pills and asked, "How's Bunnie?"

Sally was leaning over her, scanning her injuries with Nicole. Her friends could tell it was not good. Even without seeing her face, the way her shoulders and head were sagging spoke. "Sal?" Sonic pleaded.

She shook her head. "Not good, guys." She stopped to wipe the tears from her eyes. "The nerves in her arm were destroyed by the laser: she'll never be able to use her arm again." Sonic put a hand on her shoulder to comfort her. She cleared her throat to continue: "In the fall, she suffered numerous fractures in both legs and has massive internal bleeding. If it wasn't for Antoine, she would have died, I'm sure of it."

"So what do we do now?" asked Cat. "How do we treat her?"

Sally lost it. She hunched over Bunnie and bawled. "Nothing! There nothing we can do!"

That declaration of agony echoed in the hollow shaft, like the voice of an eerie and cruel ghost taunting them. Sonic felt so powerless and stupid. How could he let this happen to his friend, to his princess' best friend? Wasn't he going to be the hero who took Robotnik down and save the world? Yet, in front of him, was one young friend shot down by SWATbots of all things! He smashed a fist into the elevator wall, and dropped his head so no one could see the pain in his face. Those darn robots and their fat . . . Sonic's mind described Robotnik with choice words for which Rosie would have made him chew on soap. He was just so mad! How many more Freedom Fighters and friends would die, go missing, or be robotacized before Tubbo was put down? Sonic's mind paused. Something in that last sentence birthed an idea – a hope – in his mind. He remembered seeing something during the coup, when he was in line to be robotacized. Yes! If only he could convince the others, they could save Bunnie!

"We can save her, Sal," Sonic said in a quiet voice.

Sally sat up immediately. "What? How?" Sally asked in unbelief.

"Oui! How?"

"Trust me, Sal," he coldly declared. "But first we gotta get out of this elevator. Stand back everyone." Sonic went to a corner of the elevator as the others covered themselves as best they could in the far one. He curled into a super spin and tried to cut through the floor. It was difficult work; metal doesn't give much to spinning quills. But in short order and a bit singed at the tips, Sonic pierced through the floor and hopped down. "Let's get the ol' lead out, guys!" he called back up. As he waited he noticed the floor was gravel instead of concrete. Good he remarked to himself. He wasn't sure if his quills could take much more abuse for today.

Antoine was the next to go through. "Eet eez," he claimed, "a royal guard's duty to ensure zee safety of dee Princess. I will scout a-heads."

"Antoine," Sally said before he went. "That was very brave and noble, what you did from Bunnie. Thank you so much," she said, giving a hug and small kiss on his cheek.

Antoine winced a bit from the hug (his ribs were a bit tender) and glowed with pride. "But of course, Princess. Any gentles-man would have done zee same, seeing a lady in dee-stress." Sally smiled. If nothing else, Antoine was certainly dedicated to his dream. Antoine hopped down.

Cat and Sally gently lowered Bunnie into Sonic's and Antoine's arms and crawled through themselves.

"Time to spin and win! Stand back, while I cut us a path," declared Sonic. He watched as the Freedom Fighters backed away into a corner. Antoine slipped and fell backwards. Sonic gave him a look full of pity. "Smooth move, Ant."

Antoine got up and dusted himself off. "Eet wasn't my faults, Soneec. I was just backing aways nice and easy whens I tripped over dis stone eer." To make his point, he kicked at small peak jutting out of the gravel floor. It didn't budge; Antoine yelped in pain as his toes took the brunt of his kick.

Sally and Cat took a closer look. "It's metal," remarked Cat. "And smooth." Sally began digging it up.

"Sonic, you get busy with that tunnel. While we're waiting, we'll take a look at this," said Sally. Sonic nodded, then proceeded to spin into the ground. His Uncle Chuck has told him that under the city were tunnels that connected some of the more important buildings. It allowed important people to get from place to place without having to travel through the busy streets of Mobotropolis. The tunnels, his uncle had told him, were abandoned after the advent of hover technology, which helped the traffic and was easier than walking. He hoped to find one of these tunnels under the bank.

In a few moments, the rumble of his tunneling faded away. Sally and Cat continued to dig. Antoine was nursing his foot. "Well, Cat, what do you think? You know what it looks like to me?" asked Sally.

Cat nodded enthusiastically. "Looks like a deposit box, Princess." Indeed it was. It seemed to have an electronic encryption lock on it. She pressed the START button; the display came to life. She let out a small squeal of delight and retrieved Nicole.

"Nicole, retrieve combination data from file _power_stone_ and transmit to nearby device." Nicole obediently beeped and booped as she worked. Within a few second, the display on the safe went dark and the snap of a solenoid-driven lock being removed echoed in the crawlspace. Sally, Cat, and Antoine looked at each other. "Well, here goes nothing, " expressed Sally as she pulled on the door. It didn't move. Years in the dank crawlspace must of rusted the door shut. "Antoine, give me a hand," demanded Sally. Antoine looked very confused, then lit up.

"Woohoo, Princess," he cheered as he clapped, "you cans do eet!" Sometimes, like right now, the language barrier was a source of unbearable frustration for Sally. But she had to remain in control of her temper.

"No, Antoine," she growled through clenched teeth, "Help me open this door." Though no one could see it in the shadow of the crawlspace, Antoine could feel himself turn a few shades of red. He quickly grabbed the handle by Sally's hands. "On three, Antoine. . . One. Two. Three." They pulled as hard as they could. Without warning the door popped open, and Antoine went rolling backward, head over heels. A soft green light shone throughout the dingy space. The three Freedom Fighters looked in awe: it was the power stone!

Sally picked up the stone. "Incredible!" she whispered. The rumbling under them returned, slowly growing louder until Sonic was back in the chamber. His quills were so caked with dirt one could hardly tell he was blue. Sonic immediately noticed the glowing rock.

"It's not toxic or radioactive or nothing, is it, Sal?" he uneasily questioned. She shook her head. "Way past! Anyway," he continued, "the tunnel slopes real easy, and I made it nice and wide, so getting Bunnie down won't be a prob. It leads to a service tunnel under Robotown. We should be safe for a while down there. We'll take turns carrying Bunnie. Sal," Sonic said as he threw his pack at her, "you carry the stone." Sonic and Cat started to carry Bunnie, following Sally and Antoine into the tunnel.

It was slow going, trying to be gentle with Bunnie on the uneven ground in limited light. But at least they made it safely to the tunnel. Just as his uncle had said, they were completely abandoned. Cat asked for a break. Sonic was glad to oblige. Bunnie may have been a lady, but she was well-built, strong and heavy. "Be right back, guys. I'm gonna make sure the buttbots can't follow us," he said as he retrieved an explosive from his pack on Sally. Sonic ran back up the tunnel. Cat sat down, gasping for air. He was definitely slowing down in his old age. There was a rumbling up the tunnel, and Sonic returned, covered by another layer of soil. "That will keep us in the clear for a while," said Sonic.

"Tell ya what, Sonic," Cat huffed, still trying to catch his breath, "I don't think I have it in me to carry her all the way back to Knothole."

Sonic swallowed and steeled himself for what was about to come next. "We're not going to Knothole." The other three looked at each other, then him, and were very confused. Sonic sighed deeply and said, "We're going to the robotacizer."

The others gasped. "What are you thinking, Sonic?!" asked Sally. "Are you insane?!"

"Listen, Sal, you said that there is nothing we can do for Bunnie, right?" Sally couldn't say it; she just nodded her head slowly. "The way I figure it, we can save her - "

"By robotacizing her!" Cat yelled incredulously.

"Not all of her!" assured Sonic. "Just the broken arm and legs. I've seen it done before. Why do you think ol' Conehead only has one robotic arm? The robotacizer will repair the damage, and then we can reverse it some time later."

"No, Sonic, I don't like it," objected Sally. Bunnie had been her closest friend forever. She loved Bunnie and didn't want her to die, but she knew how hard it would be for her friend to live with the robotic parts. She was torn as what to do.

"Oui, yes, I don't likes eet either," added Antoine.

"And neither do I," growled Cat.

Sonic realized how hard it was for them to use Robotnik's most-feared weapon as the device that would save Bunnie's life. "Guys, it's the only way to save her life." He saw that they were not being swayed. "Listen, Cat, you've been prepping me to lead for a day just like this. I don't like this idea any more than you do, but this hedgehog will be smoldering crater before he lets a Freedom Fighter under his watch die." Cat looked at the young but stalwart Sonic. Yes, he was brazen and careless and conceited sometimes, but in all his days never had met someone with more determination to succeed or more fidelity toward his fellow Mobians than this young hedgehog.

"Are you sure you want to take this responsibility on, Sonic? You realize it's a thankless job – no matter what you say or do, someone will be second-guessing you and doubting you. You will get none of the credit and all of the blame. Are you ready for that?" asked Cat.

Sonic looked him straight in his eyes with a determination so fierce it even made the veteran feel uncomfortable. Cat understood without Sonic saying a word and nodded. With that Sonic continued, "I'm the leader of this group; the decision is mine. You're just gonna have to trust me. If she wants to blame someone, she can blame me." More like hate me for the rest of her days, thought Sonic. The others looked down at their dying friend with the color slowly fading from her face.

Sally saw no other hope and nodded her head. "Okay, let's go," Sonic said.

Things were not going smoothly for Robotnik and Snivley at the Headquarters either. "Where are they, Snivley?" ranted Robotnik. Cluck joined in the abuse by flying about Snivley, pecking at his nose. Perspiration flowed down his face.

"They seem to have cut a hole in the floor of the elevator, sir, and tunneled beneath the ground to escape. The tunnel has caved in." He didn't understand why his uncle had to be such a beast. It wasn't like he hadn't done what he was ordered to do. He had sent more than enough bots to the bank, but the Freedom Fighters had just outmaneuvered them. Of course, Robotnik would never acept that, so it was Snivley's fault that they escaped.

"Find those pathetic mongrels, Snivley, now!"

Sweat was soaking Snivley's clothes. "Yes, sir," he squeaked in terror. He turned back to the Control Panel as a light began to flash to his left. "How odd. Sir, someone is activating the robotacizer without authorization!"

"What! Who?" A surveillance transmission appeared on a monitor. Sally, Cat, and Antoine were at the robotacizer controls as Bunnie lay near the robotacizing unit. "It appears one is injured, Snivley," Robotnik observed. "They are trying to treat her injuries using my robotacizer! Get security over there, now!" Robotnik thought of how pleasant it would be to finally capture the Princess. With her joining his robotic legion of obedient servants, the resistance would fall. It was looking like a pretty good day.

At the robotacizer, Sally was working with her computer. "All right, Nicole, activate the robotacizer."

"ACTIVATING," droned the computer. The whole room buzzed with the sounds of coils and other electronics powering up. What appeared to be a lightening bolt was flashing on the robotacizer pad. "SECURITY FORCES INCOMING, SALLY," warned Nicole.

"Sonic, you have to keep the bots off long enough for us to finish," reminded Sally.

He was leaning over Bunnie, holding her hand. "No prob, Sal." He wiped the tears out of his eyes. "Hang on, Bunnie. You'll be cool soon. And," he whispered as he gave her hand a gentle squeeze, "I'm sorry about this." He went out into the hall to guard the way. He took a melodramatic stance, arms crossed. "All right, Robuttski, gimme your best shot."

"It's all set, guys. Let's do it," said Sally. Cat and Antoine gently lifted Bunnie and brought her bad arm toward the robotacizer beam. Her left wrist grazed the bolt; her left arm became robotic. Sally turned away, hot tears burning in her eyes. If only she had planned better, if she had not underestimated Robotnik's response time, if only she had anticipated the ambush, if . . . if . . .IF! She felt as if it were her fault that her best friend almost died and now must be robotacized to live. She was pulled from her musings by the explosions and ruckus coming from down the hall. Sally, Cat, and Antoine looked concernedly toward the door. They had to hurry.

"SURRENDER, FREEDOM FIGHTER. RESISTANCE IS POINTL -" the SWATbot said no more when the grenade beneath its feet exploded. Sonic had piled up the first squad of unfortunate bots that he destroyed around him to form a barrier. He had confiscated a laser rifle from them and was not timid with it.

"C'mon, Moonhead, is this the best ya got?" taunted Sonic to the orb floating above him.

"Hardly, Rodent!" Robotnik growled in reply. At that moment, Sonic's 'bunker' exploded from a rocket fired by a SWATbot. Sonic was disoriented, but only for a moment.

"Ha! You think that's gonna stop me, Conehead? You ain't seen nothin' yet!" He curled into a super spin and dashed down the hall. SWATbots crashed left and right, becoming piles of scrap. Then Sonic crashed into something that wouldn't move - a Tankbot. "Hmm," he groaned with concern. "Well, it's been fun, bots, but I gotta run." With that, he made a hasty retreat back to the robotacizer room. He burst through the doors and shut them. "Getting a bit hostile out there." Then he saw Bunnie, awake and standing! Her left arm and both legs had been robotacized to counteract her injuries. Amazing he said to himself. "Bunnie, y- your . . . " he stammered.

"I'm all right, Sugah-hog," she replied as she gave him a hug. Gently she whispered in his ear, "And don't worry your lil head none, Sugah-hog, I don't blame you for trying to save my life." Sonic felt himself tearing up again but held it back. Enough crying for one day.

"Thanks, Bunnie. Good to see your up and at um again," Sonic said giving her a thumbs up.

"Oui, she eez in full health again."

"The robotacizer took care of all the injuries," commented Sally. The whole room began to shake.

"What going on?" asked Cat.

"A Tankbot is coming down the hall. We gotta juice." The five friends ran into the tunnel from which they came in. The tankbot crashed through the wall. It scanned the area, but the Freedom Fighters were gone.

"Snivley?" asked Robotnik with forced calmness. "Where are the Freedom Fighters?"

The small man choked on his own fear, trying to muster the courage to give the bad news. "They've [*gulp*] escaped, Sir," he barely squeaked out.

Robotnik ground his teeth in the most hair-raising manner. "They've what?" his hissed as he approached Snivley. Snivley just cowered. It was not going to be a good day.

A few days later, Sally and Bunnie were sitting together in Sally's hut, just chatting idly as they frequently did. Bunnie was lounging on the bed, playing with a loose thread in the blanket. Sally could not help but address the elephant in the room. "Bunnie, are you mad at me for allowing you to get robotacized?" It was a question that had plagued her since the mission. Bunnie was her closest friend, and it tore Sally's heart to not know how her friend felt about all of this.

Bunnie sat up on the bed and looked Sally straight in her eyes. "Now you listen here, Sally-girl, and you listen good." Sally tensed up a bit at Bunnie's serious tone. "Am I happy that my pretty lil body is half-made of metal and makes me smell like a SWATbot sometimes? You can bet your cute lil tail, I'm not. But none of this is your fault, Sugah. Or Sugah-hog's. I got distracted and let some bot get too close to me. I should be deader than doornail. But thanks to all of ya, I pulled through." Bunnie began to tear up. "I'm sorry for putting y'all in such a spot."

Sally embraced her half-robotic friend. "Some day, Bunnie, I promise that we'll get you back."


End file.
